Lexi’s POV
“Married?? I can’t be married!!” I yell panic on my face as I throw the paper at him to catch but it lands on the floor aimlessly.
“I’m going to be married to my long-time fiancé in the next few weeks!!!” I yell at him pointing my fingers at him accusingly
“Don’t point your fingers at me, how do I know you’re not the one who forced me into this” he points at me his eyes lit up with rage
“I am getting married in a few weeks too!!” He yells
“Yea I forced you into a condom as well” I yell back turning around “Urgggghhh” I scream disgust filling me up, “Oh my gosh, I betrayed Jackson” I mutter to myself but I can’t bring myself to cry, only panic.
“Oh boo hoo,” he rolls his eyes finding his trousers and pulling them on, “Find your dress, we are getting this annulled immediately before Victoria can find out,” he says running his hand through his hair but he doesn’t seem as panic filled as I am.
“Why are you not panicking??” I yell and my pout deepens, “We are both getting married in a few weeks and we just cheated on our partners and got married to people that are not them!! How can you not panic!!!” I yell again trying not to hyperventilate about the issue again.
He sighs heavily, “You really don’t know who I am do you?” He rolls his eyes again.
“Roll it again and it might get stuck in there” I scoff finding my dress, I turn to him “Well turn around!” I raise a brow at him.
“From the pieces I can gather now, I think I’ve seen and felt all of you” he raises a brow at me but turns around before he can see my blushing cheeks.
“What an arrogant man” I whisper to myself pulling on the purple dress Emily had forced me to wear to the club.
“Oh my gosh, Emily!!” I yell grabbing my phone.
“Who is Emily? Don’t tell me you have a daughter??” He turns to me worried
“No she’s my best friend, I have to find my phone, help me find my phone!!” I yell turning to him eyes wide.
“I should have guessed you would yell always when speaking from how much yelling you did last night,” he says a smirk appearing on his lips as he grabs my phone from the table handing it to me.
“I’m glad I don’t remember it then” I mutter turning to my phone, I see over 5 missed calls from Emily followed by a full-text message between the both of us while I was updating her on my whole night.
“You’re joking right Lexi?” Is the last message she sends when I text her I got married to some handsome stranger at the bar and we were about to consummate our marriage.
I shake my head in disappointment,
“What do they put in these drinks in Vegas?” I mutter at the same time,
“What do they put in these drinks in Vegas?” The supposed handsome stranger says the same words rubbing his temples.
I pause turning to look up at him but turn back to my phone failing Emily.
“I’m Ethan Blackwood by the way,” he says stretching his hand forward and the call goes in at that time.
“Did I just hear Ethan Blackwood?” She yells out loud as I put it on speaker.
“Lexi did you fuck the hottest man on the planet right now??” She yells screaming right after
My eyes pop open in shock, my eyes racking his form again, what is he? Like some model?
I remove it from the loudspeaker placing my phone to my ears, Emily is the friend you never put on speakerphone.
“I am in deep shit,” I say into the phone.
….
“Okay so we will meet at the court to get this annulled in three hours” he instructs me as we take the walk of shame into the lobby but honestly it feels like we are all having the walk of shame.
I mean I just cheated on my long-time boyfriend and fiancé and I don’t know how to feel about it, so I tell him? Do I keep this to myself and act like this never happened?
I shake my head as the cab comes to a stop in front of me.
“Here’s my contact,” I slide him my card and he slides a black card my way back.
I will call you in two hours, don’t be late please, “We have to get this done before I leave this city I don’t know what Jackson would do if he found out” I shake my head fear filling my eyes
“You don’t have to tell him or anyone you know” he shakes his head a black SUV pulling over beside my taxi.
“We will meet in two hours” he nods at me and jumps into the SUV.
I do the same only with a taxi.
Lexi’s POV I grab the only wearable thing I can find, a white long handless dress with brown heels, “I can’t believe I let you pack for me, this is all you brought for me?” I pull out another flimsy excuse of a dress, throwing it across the bed, outfits like that put me in the situation I’m in now.“Calm down Lexi, we are going to figure out everything,” she says beside me, closing the box, “And plus, I wanted you to look amaze balls throughout this trip” She shakes her head, turning her curly brown hair to the side.“I hope so,” I say nervously.“Let’s go catch some breakfast before we see your husband” she kicks jumping from the bed where I’m about to grab her.“You miss” she giggles walking towards the door.Soon we find ourselves standing in front of the courthouse along with so many others, in fact, the entire place is full.“I wonder how many people here actually came to get married and how many people here came to get their marriage annulled after a drunken mistake” I mutter t
Lexi’s POVThe plane lands and Emily and I fix ourselves into a cab.“I can’t believe that happened” She shakes her head still awestruck by what happened in Vegas.Back to New York City, the city where dreams come true.Emily and I had moved here along with the rest of our families, after school we became partners and started a Wedding planning business, our biggest dreams were not happening yet but we had a lot of jobs, especially from wealthy and influential people.“Whatever happened in Vegas stays in Vegas” I turn to her eyes narrowed, “Nobody should even get a whiff of this” I point at her“I know” she giggles, “You should go home, I’m sure Jackson has missed you so much” She rolls her eyes fake gagging as she has never really liked him much but we all grew up together so she had to accept him, especially now that I was marrying him.“Yeah while I was busy raw-dogging some stranger and marrying him in Vegas” I shake my head in shame turning to the driver who sends us a weird look
Ethan’s POV“Come on man, are you going to stay here all day?” Rafaelle taps by the back, the private Jet parking in my personal parking lot“I pay for it don’t I?” I pull my eyes open to his face hovering over mine.“Lexi was right, you are arrogant, how come I never saw it till she pointed it out?” He shakes his head, a brown backpack crossed over his back.“Hmmm Lexi” her name rolls off my tongue and honestly I can’t seem to forget her.“Make sure Victoria never finds out about what happened, you know how crazy your chick is” he raises a brow at me, the flight attendants walking towards us“Sir, your car is here,” she says sending me a seductive smile.I want to stare at her and feel something, lust, anything but I feel nothing as my thoughts are occupied by only one person at the moment and that person is not my fiancé.“Victoria is crazy” I shake my head, Victoria is my fiancé and we have been dating for a pretty long time, long enough to forgive each other so much for cheating,
Lexi POV I sit in the back of the cab, my bags crammed beside me, my fingers gripping the worn leather seat as the city lights blur past the window. My mind is a whirlwind of pain, anger, and disbelief.Jackson and Sophia were together this whole time and they both deceived and betrayed me. I can't believe I was so blind to everything going on around me.I gave Jackson everything, my love, my trust, even my business, and he threw it all away for her…my step-sister, of all people. The one person in this world who has made it her mission to see me suffer.I stare blankly at my reflection in the window, my eyes hollow and my lips pressed into a thin line.What am I supposed to do now?I have nothing left. No home, no business, no safety net. Just the clothes in these bags and the last few bills in my wallet.“Where are you going?” the driver grumbles, his voice breaking through the fog in my mind.I clear my throat, trying to steady my voice. “Uhhh...” I give him Emily’s address, that is
Lexi POV Emily's eyes widen with realization, and then they darken with fury.“No.” Her voice is quiet and deadly. “No, no, no. Don’t tell me…”“My step-sister, Sophia, has been cheating on me with Sophia this whole time.”Emily shoots up from the couch, pacing in front of me, her hands flying into her hair. “That son of a bitch!! I knew it! I fucking knew it! I never liked that asshole. Never. But this? He knows how your stepmother and step-sister treats you and he decided to be on their side instead?”“Tell me about it.” I laugh bitterly.She spins to face me, her eyes wild. “Are you okay?”“Define okay.”She drops onto the couch beside me, grabbing my hands. “I mean, what are you going to do now since he stole everything from you?”“I’m going to start over. I have my clients who already know me, I can rebuild everything from scratch again.”Emily blinks at me like she was not expecting that answer, but I refuse to give up and lose to those two people. “Just like that?”I nod. “Jus
Lexi POV I take a step towards Sophia, my hands curling into fists. “Don’t play games with me, Sophia. I know what you’ve been doing, I lost all my clients because of you. How cruel can you be? Does it bring you joy seeing me suffer?”“Of course I do.” She laughs mockingly. “Do you think I want you in this city? You’re pathetic, Lexi…you always have been, and I won’t rest until you’re gone for good.”“Why? Why do you hate me so much?”“Because I can.” her smile is cruel, and she knows it.I don't know what I was expecting, but hearing those words hit me like a slap. There’s no reason, no justification for years of torture…just pure, unfiltered hatred.My throat tightens. “I hate you.”Sophia smirks. “Good. Now get out of my sight.”I stand there for a moment, my chest heaving, my nails digging into my palms. But what can I do? She’s already won.Swallowing my pride, I turn on my heel and storm out, my vision blurring with unshed tears. I don’t stop moving until I’m back at Emily’s, m
Lexi POV When I wake up again my mouth is dry and my body is sore for some reason. I blink against the harsh fluorescent lights, my head pounding like a drum. A blurry figure hovers over me, and then Emily’s face comes into focus.She’s staring at me again but with less shock on her face and now with more worry, her brows knitted together in concern.I groan as I start rubbing my temples. “Tell me it was a dream.”I turn my head towards her slowly, dread sinking in my stomach as instead of replying, Emily sits down on the bed beside me and holds my hand gently.“Emily,” I whisper, “please tell me it was a dream.”“It's not, Lexi.” She swallows, shaking her head.My throat closes up and I squeeze my eyes shut. Maybe if I wish long enough this whole thing would be a dream, I would open my eyes and my life would be back to normal.But when I open them, I’m still here, still in the hospital. This is not a dream, it's very real, and I'm pregnant, and not just pregnant.Twins.“Of course…o
Lexi POV “We could steal his toothbrush, I'm sure there will be a lot of his DNA samples there.” “I don't think that would be legal.” I scrunch up my nose. I don't even want to be anywhere near Jackson and Sophia anymore.”“I know, but I'm just saying if you want to know the truth, you have options.” Emily shrugs.I chew on my lip, my mind spinning. This whole situation is a disaster, but maybe Emily is right. Maybe I need to know for sure before making any decisions.But one thing is for sure, I’m not telling Jackson about this, and if the babies are his, I don't think I would want to have his children.I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Fine, I’ll think about it.”Emily smirks at me. “That’s all I ask.”“I hate you.” I groan again, sinking deeper into the couch.She pats my knee. “I love you too.”_____Two weeks later, I'm sitting on the couch, my fingers are trembling and my heart is pounding so hard that it feels like it might burst out of my chest as I refresh the e
Lexi POV I clear my throat nervously before saying “Hi.”“Hi,” Ethan says back in that low and smooth voice of his that makes heat pool low in my belly.I have no idea how long I stand there, simply staring at him until he smirks and asks, “So…can I come in, or do intend to have this conversation like this?”“I'm so sorry…come in.” I step aside, pulling the door wider.Lexi…you idiot. I can't believe I let myself get distracted by his face. It's not like Ethan is the most attractive man I have ever seen - okay, this might be a lie - but it does not mean I should let myself get distracted by him. It's a good thing Emily is here to help me out.He walks past me, his presence immediately making the apartment feel ten degrees warmer. He pauses for a while the moment inside, scanning the space like he’s not used to homes this small, and then I remember how huge just the living room of his penthouse apartment is…of course, he has never stepped foot in this kind of place before…what were we
Lexi POV What the hell just happened? I had not been expecting Ethan to call me back, so when I saw the call I did not want to pick up, but Emily snatched my phone and did it, and I had no choice but to talk to him.But of all things...I was not expecting this…not at all. Ethan apologized. He wants to meet up and talk properly and he wants me to pick somewhere I'm comfortable with this time. My thoughts keep swirling around in my head and I have no idea what to think.Then Emily says exactly what I’m thinking.“Did he just... apologize?”I blink at her. “Yeah, I think so. Either that or we are both hallucinating from stress and malnutrition. He wants to talk…”Emily stares at me for a few seconds before she snorts “I have no idea how you should even handle this.”“Welcome to the club,” I mutter. I am so confused…and tired of everything. I keep wanting to sleep and wake up to see that this was all a terrible nightmare, but no…this is my life now.“Do you want to hear him out?”“I do n
Ethan POV “It’s about a lot of things,” she says smoothly, folding her hands in her lap. “But we cannot pretend that this situation does not come with...opportunities.”“Opportunities?” I echo.“Of course. A proper Blackwood family…wife, children, and a legacy. Your grandfather will not care about how it happened, you know that he only ever cares about appearances and he will be glad about this.”“Lexi is not exactly…” I have no idea how to finish the statement. If I tell my mother that Lexi is not my type, she would ask how I was attracted enough to have sex with her, and I am not about to have that conversation with my mother.“And what about Victoria?” I ask instead.My mother snorts…a very unladylike, un-Catherine Blackwood type of snort. “Please. That mannequin with a trust fund? The only time I can tolerate her is when she keeps her mouth shut, and she never does that. We both know how I feel about your relationship with her, but as you are an adult, I cannot dictate how to liv
Ethan POV “I offered her a glass of wine to unwind, but she kept refusing. I thought she was being uptight, so I kept pushing…and then she blurted out that she’s pregnant with twins and they are mine.”And covers her mouth like she did not mean to say it. I recall her actions vividly.Rafaelle whistles low. “That’s… a lot.”“I know.”“And you… what, accused her of lying?” Of course, he would figure it all out although I tried to not bring that up.I stare at the floor instead of replying.“Ethan.”“I might have called her a gold digger too, and while she was crying I told her to leave or I would call security,” I mutter. Now that I have the time to think about my actions that night, I might have gone overboard.Rafaelle groans and throws his head back as he sinks into the leather chair across from me. “I have no idea why I'm surprised, you always get mean when you're in a tight spot, but this is too much, even for you…so what are you going to do now?”“I have no idea, that's why I ca
Ethan POV I'm sitting in my office the next day, hitting refresh on my phone like a madman instead of focusing on the work I have to get done.I cannot concentrate on anything, I'm just waiting for Martin’s update like it’s going to change the outcome. Like it’s going to undo the reality that Lexi might be pregnant with my children.My phone pings with a text, and once I see that it's from Martin, I open it immediately, staring at the time he sent nervously.Open it, Ethan, I push myself, and with a sigh, I tap on it. It's all in there, recent pictures, receipts, and reports, Martin is very thorough with his work…and Lexi was telling the truth.I ball my hands into fists, how could I have let this happen? How could I have been so careless?I lean back in my chair and run a hand down my face. A bitter laugh escapes my throat before I can stop it. Of course…the one time that I assume a woman is trying to trick me, and she was just… telling the damn truth.God, what do I even do now?Tw
Lexi POV Emily reads out loud as she types:“Ethan. You do not know me, but you damn well know Lexi and let me tell you, she does not deserve the garbage you just dumped on her. You do not get to humiliate her, kick her out, and then pretend like you are the only victim here. She is pregnant with your babies, and you were there when it happened, so maybe try connecting the dots. This is not just about your reputation or your bank account. It’s about a woman who is scared and alone and trying to do the right thing. The least you can do is have a conversation like an adult. If you do not want to be involved, fine. That is your choice. But at least give her the divorce so she can move on with her life instead of being stuck in this circus. Grow up and be a better man. Take responsibility. Either way, leave her alone if you are not going to do the right thing.”My mouth falls open slightly. “You just… wow. That was a lot.”She breathes out hard like she just ran a marathon instead of sen
Ethan POV Lexi wipes her face with her sleeve and glares up at me through a mess of tears. "You have no idea what I’ve been through.""Then explain it to me," I bark, more out of frustration than anything else. "Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you’re trying to trap me."She stands suddenly, fire blazing in her eyes. "Trap you? You think I want to be tied to someone like you?”Someone like me? The way she says the word like I'm beneath her makes me bristle."And now here you are conveniently pregnant with twins just as the court orders us to stay married after we just happened to have sex in Vegas and accidentally get married…” I shake my head. "It’s too much. It doesn’t add up.""It does add up, Ethan," she says quietly, voice trembling. "I only slept with two men. Jackson and you. And the babies aren’t his. That leaves you."I don’t want this to be true. I want to rewind and go back to when this was just a three-month inconvenience. A contract. A fun little detour bef
Lexi POV I slap my hands over my mouth the second the words leave me like I can shove them back in, but it’s too late. My heart is pounding so loud, I'm sure he can hear it.Ethan's eyes are wide with shock and he stares at me, then he suddenly lowers his gaze to my stomach like it's suddenly going to grow a baby bump right in front of his eyes.His mouth opens as if he wants to speak, but no words come out. He slowly lowers the wine glass to the table and sits on the couch like he can't stand anymore.“I…I did not mean to say it like that,” I stammer, my heart pounding so loud I can hear it echoing in my ears. “I was going to tell you, I just…God, I didn’t plan to say it like that.”"You're... pregnant?” He finally breaks the silence, his voice low and strained.I nod slowly, still breathing like I just ran a marathon. “Yeah.”I did not plan to tell him like this…I didn't, but now that it's out in the open, I feel lighter, like maybe we can figure this out together.Ethan POV“I’m p
Lexi POV "She's willing to wait? For three months?” Their relationship was not my business but I was too curious to not ask."Yes.""That's... surprising," I say at a loss for words."Is it?"I nod slowly. "I mean, if my fiancé came home married to someone else, I wouldn't be so understanding." I wince internally as the words leave my mouth…after my fiance was cheating on me with my sister this entire time and I had no idea.Ethan sighs, leaning back against the couch. "Victoria understands the complexities of my life. Of our world.""So, what? In your world, accidental marriages are just minor inconveniences?"He hesitates, then says, "Victoria knows that appearances matter. That sometimes, we have to navigate situations strategically."I let out a bitter laugh. "Strategically. Right.” That's all this is to him, a situation that he would have to navigate strategically until he can marry the woman that suits his world.Ethan's jaw tightens. "It was a mistake. One we're both paying fo